Department of Genetics and Development
Department head : Daniel VAIMAN
Assistant departmen head : Evelyne BLOCH-GALLEGO, Pascal MAIRE
The department, includes 6 teams, all of which are implicated in various aspects of genetic and developmental studies :
(i) An improvement of knowledge about fundamental mechanisms of mammalian development, from the most early stages (fecundation, early development, implantation and placental development (team D. Vaiman) to the functional study of developmental processes in the nervous system (teams E. Bloch-Gallego and J. Chelly), the understanding of neuromuscular integration (team J. Chelly) and muscle development (team P. Maire), and the genetic mechanisms underlying some inflammatory diseases (team M. Delpech).
(ii) An improvement of knowledge about human diseases associated with developmental dysfunctions involving the biological systems evoked above.
More specifically:
a. For the early stages: human infertilities (direct genetic causes and indirect causes such as endometriosis) and human placental diseases (preeclampsia and intra uterine growth restriction, (team D. Vaiman).
b. For diseases of the nervous systems: mental retardations and lysosomial diseases affecting the CNS (teams E. Bloch-Gallego, J. Chelly)
c. For diseases affecting muscle development: cardiopathies and muscular dystrophies (team P. Maire)
(iii) The intermingling of these two points should benefit to medicine in two major ways :
a. Molecular diagnostics, notably for the severe forms of mental retardation (team J. Chelly), for certain inflammatory diseases (team M. Delpech), and also for the identification of early markers in pre-eclampsia and endometriosis (team D. Vaiman). Indeed, the identification of new genes involved in mental retardation has already permitted a direct transfer of the detection of certain genetically inherited cases to diagnostic laboratories in hospitals.
b. The development of new therapeutic approaches using gene surgery, gene therapy, in the framework of pre-clinical studies carried out on small model animals.
